The Rainy Weather Club’s Practical Revolution
Aberdeen women unite to reject impractical Victorian fashion in favor of functional, mackintosh-based rainy day gear.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
A few premonitory rainy days have reminded the lovers of out-of-doors of the drizzling months to come. Already the 'Rainy Weather Clubs' of last year are refreshing or renewing their costumes. A number of Aberdeen ladies, urged by a desire for comfort and encouraged by the examples of city clubs, have formed a club. Boston led the way in the East; Tacoma on our coast followed last year. The club there consisted of sixty ladies, who sacrificed the conventional for a suitable and hygienic street dress for rainy days. They agreed upon a costume composed of a plain skirt shortened to the boot tops, half-length mackintosh leggings or rubber boots, a mackintosh the length of the skirt to wear in heavy rains, and a hat which could stand the test of a Washington winter. To be less conspicuous, the members all appeared in their suits on the streets the same day. The Aberdeen ladies have decided upon similar costumes and are trying to have them ready for the first rainy day. This is a move that will interest all women, but should appeal most strongly to those who wheel baby carriages. It may be practicable in pleasant weather to push the carriage with one hand and carry a train in the other, but even feminine ingenuity will be severely taxed to contrive to wheel the buggy, keep a long gown out of the wet, and carry an umbrella at the same time. The club will meet at the home of Mrs. H. A. Hayes, Saturday, October 29, at 3 p.m.
“It may be practicable in pleasant weather to push the carriage with one hand and carry a train in the other; but even feminine ingenuity will be severely taxed to contrive to wheel the buggy, keep a long gown out of the wet, and carry an umbrella at the same time.”
This early push for 'functional fashion' reflects a recurring theme in Pacific Northwest history: adapting our dress and expectations to the relentless reality of the coastal climate. It echoes modern frustrations with urban infrastructure, showing that even in 1892, women were organizing to demand common-sense solutions to daily life.
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